The present invention, Colocasia ‘Imperial Gigante’, relates to a new and distinct interspecific hybrid of Colocasia, hereinafter referred to by its cultivar name, ‘Imperial Gigante’. ‘Imperial Gigante’ is a new tropical plant used as a landscape and container plant in tropical and subtropical areas.
The new cultivar was derived from a controlled breeding program conducted by the Inventor at his nursery in Louisville, Ky. The overall purpose of the breeding program is to make selections of Colocasia plants that are unique with large leaves and vigorous growth habits. ‘Imperial Gigante’ arose from a cross made in June of 2010 between an unnamed plant of a Colocasia of hybrid origin from the Inventor's breeding program as the female parent and an unnamed plant of Colocasia gigantea as the male parent. ‘Imperial Gigante’ was selected as a single unique plant in June of 2012 from amongst the seedlings derived from the above cross.
Asexual propagation of the new cultivar was first accomplished by in vitro propagation under the direction of the Inventor in Eustis, Fla. in July of 2012. Asexual propagation by in vitro propagation has shown that the characteristics of the new cultivar are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations.